The dangers of buying animals on the internet

Eileen Wargacki

Published:11:00Tuesday 27 October 2015

A disabled pensioner was left devastated when the puppy she bought from an online breeder was not what it seemed.

Eileen Wargacki, 82, was forced to give up her beloved pup Daniel when she found out he was not the miniature Jack Russell she thought, but a mixed-breed mutt that could double in size in just a few months.

Eileen's pup

Mrs Wargacki forked out £350 for the 11-week-old puppy that she believed was a pure-breed, but when she took him to her local PDSA vet service in Hawes Side Lane she was told by vets that he ‘was not a full breed Jack Russell’.

He was such a lovely ball of fluff

“I didn’t want to give him up.”

Widow Mrs Wargacki fell in love with a picture of a miniature Jack Russell puppy on a UK pet breeding and selling website, but soon realised something was amiss when she brought the animal into her home.

She said: “He looked nothing like the dogs in the photograph.”

Mrs Wargacki, who suffers from heart problems and has to take 23 pills a day to keep her health in check, says it would have been impossible for her to take care of a large dog.

She said: “It’s hard for me to get around, especially since I broke my leg earlier this year.

“I just wouldn’t be able to take care of him. It would have killed me.”

Not knowing how big Daniel could grow, Mrs Wargacki took the difficult decision to hand Daniel over to a family friend after three happy weeks together.

She said: “I’m sad I had to give him up, but I feel he has gone to a good home.”

A spokesperson for PDSA vets said: “Although our vet did not believe Daniel to be full breed Jack Russell, he received his first vaccination and check-up and was found to be a happy, healthy puppy.”

Kennel Club Secretary Caroline Kisko said: “There are some warning signs to look out for when buying a puppy, including people selling them through online classified ads and offering to deliver the pup to the new owner’s door.

“Anyone buying a puppy should see the puppy with its mother, in its breeding environment, and any breeder who refuses to allow this should be avoided.”